“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.”
Matthew 5:5 (NIV)
To have a healthy ministry, you have to learn to be meek. Matthew 5:5 says, “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth” (NIV).
The Bible lists many benefits of meekness, including:
- The meek will be satisfied (Psalm 22:26)
- God will guide the meek (Psalm 25:9)
- The meek will become wise (Proverbs 11:2)
- The meek will be filled with joy (Isaiah 29:19)
There are many, many other benefits. The problem is, we misunderstand the term “meek.” We don’t really know what meekness is. In fact, we often confuse it with another term that sounds like it—“meek” sounds like “weak.” We don’t want to be weak, so we avoid being meek.
But the truth is that meekness and weakness are at the opposite ends of the spectrum.
Meekness is in no way weakness. In fact, the Greek word for meekness literally means “strength under control.” To be meek is not to be weak. It’s used to describe a wild stallion that has been tamed. That stallion still has all the strength it had when it was wild, but now its strength is under control.
Meekness is strength bottled up for the master’s use. God doesn’t want you to be weak, but he does want you to be meek. The Bible teaches that it’s one of the keys to stress reduction in your life.
Here’s a simple definition of the word meek: Let go, and let God.
That is the essence of meekness. It is surrendering, submitting, and agreeing to what God wants to do in your life. It’s letting God be God in your life.
Let go, and let God.
This is particularly importantly in dealing with ministry burnout. If you’ll begin to practice letting go and letting God work in your ministry, it will relieve your stress and eliminate the worries that are so common in pastoral work.
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